Gary Neville blown away by West Ham ‘destroyer’ after what he did vs Man United
Gary Neville gave a special mention to one player in particular after West Ham rescued a point against Man United on Thursday.
Andrew Kitchen was officiating his third Premier League game, and was bang on the money with most of his decisions during the 1-1 draw at Old Trafford on 4 December.
Diogo Dalot popped up in the box just before the hour mark to put the Red Devils ahead, being crowded by his jubilant teammates, only for his effort to be ruled out in the final moments.
Amad Diallo was correctly refused a penalty kick early in the game, which would have changed the entire course of the game, but Nuno Espirito Santo‘s side eventually grew into the game away from home.
All signs pointed towards a home victory, that was, until Soungoutou Magassa levelled the score just 12 minutes before the final whistle, sending the away end into pure elation.
And according to Neville, it was not just his goal that stood out at the Theatre of Dreams.
Soungoutou Magassa gets a special mention after a point away from home
In a match where Jarrod Bowen was completely out of form, and Nuno was missing Lucas Paqueta and Crysencio Summerville, the French midfielder came up with the most important moment.
Speaking live on Sky Sports (4 December, 9:53pm), Neville gave a special mention to one player, saying: “Magassa has been a destroyer out there and got the goal that looks like earning West Ham a point.”
The 22-year-old has not made the most perfect of starts to life in East London, but after his standout performance against the Red Devils, fans were shown exactly what he can bring to the team.
As shown by the graphic from Football Insider‘s partnership with Opta, Magassa was especially dominant down the right flank, putting a stop to most of Matheus Cunha‘s attacks.
Magassa’s MOTM performance in numbers at Old Trafford
As well as his goal, Magassa was instrumental all over the park, unleashing two shots, making 18 defensive contributions, winning 75 per cent of his tackles, and making eight recoveries [FotMob].
He also dove straight into 16 ground duels, as well as five aerial duels, was fouled on four occasions, while also committing four fouls, but avoiding a third sanction in the 2025-26 league campaign.
The Hammers have been crying out for a massive force in the middle of the park, with Edson Alvarez gone and Guido Rodriguez a complete failure of a summer transfer.
While Nuno cannot rely on one player to dominate the midfield every single week, he is certainly finding his feet at the London Stadium and should only go from strength to strength now.